This Day in History- September 3

• 1995: Bharatiya Lok Panchayat

On September 3, 1995, Ram Jethmalani (lawyer and MP) founded the Bharatiya Lok Panchayat party.

• 1999: New Phase of Military Modernisation 

Following the Kargil conflict, India embarked on a new phase of military modernisation.

• 36 BC: Battle of Naulochus

On September 3, 36 BC, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, Octavian’s admiral, defeated Pompey’s son, Sextus Pompeius, putting an end to Pompeian opposition to the Second Triumvirate.

• 1501: The New Governor of the Indies

Spanish Queen Isabella I nominated Nicolás de Ovando y Cáceres as the new Governor of the Indies.

• 1752: Gregory Defeated Julius Caesar

Britain and the British Empire (including the American colonies) switched to the Gregorian calendar on September 3, 1752, which resulted in an 11-day loss. People rioted because they believed the government had stolen 11 days of their lives.

• 1791: French Revolution

On September 3, 1791, the National Assembly enacted the new French Constitution, which established France as a constitutional monarchy.

• 1904: The Olympic Games

There was a throw-off in the discus final for the first time in Olympic Games history when Americans Martin Sheridan and Ralph Rose tied with the best throw of 128′ 10 1/2 “in Saint Louis Sheridan won with a time of 127′ 10 1/4.”

• 1938: Olympics got Cancelled  

Because of the Second Sino-Japanese War, the 1940 Olympic venue was relocated from Tokyo, Japan to Helsinki, Finland; the Olympics were eventually cancelled on September 3, 1938.

• 1939: World War II

Following the invasion of Poland, Britain declared war on Germany. France arrived 6 hours later, followed by Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Canada.

• 1944: Anne Frank Left Westerbork

The 68th and final cargo of Dutch Jews from Westerbork (including Anne Frank) left for the Auschwitz extermination camp on September 3, 1944.

• 1967: Sweden Switched to Driving on the Right Side of the Road

Sweden began driving on the right side of the road on September 3, 1967.

• 1972: Mark Spitz Won the Gold

At the Munich Olympics, American swimmer Mark Spitz won the coveted 100m gold medal on September 3, 1972,  in a world record time of 51.22 seconds. He accomplished the freestyle sprint double after winning the 200m in a world record time of 1:52.78.

• 1995: eBay was Founded!

On this day, in 1995, Pierre Omidyar founded eBay, which is also known as Electronic Bay. 

• 2013: Microsoft Acquired Nokia

On September 3, 2013, Microsoft paid $7.2 billion to acquire Nokia.

• 2014: Nuclear Bomb Testing by North Korea

North Korea performed its sixth and biggest nuclear test, claiming success with a hydrogen bomb test.

• 1957: Sadhguru

Sadhguru (Jagadish Vasudev) is an Indian yoga guru and author. Jaggi Vasudev graduated from the University of Mysore with a bachelor’s degree in English and has been teaching yoga in southern India since 1982.

• Debraj Ray

Debraj Ray is an Indian-American economist whose research interests include development economics and game theory. Ray has been a Julius Silver Professor in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences since 2002 and has been a Professor of Economics at New York University since 1999. He is Co-Editor of the American Economic Review.

• 1971: Kiran Desai

Kiran Desai is a well-known Indian novelist. Her novel The Inheritance of Loss was awarded the Man Booker Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Fiction Award in 2006. 

• 1993: Dominic Thiem

Dominic Thiem is a professional tennis player from Austria. The Association of Tennis Professionals has placed him as high as world No. 3 in singles, which he first reached in March 2020.